Individual language learners: some differences (what they do)

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Many teachers often face difficulties in teaching a class with different learners’ characters. Some of them try to handle by knowing and understanding the characters. Then, Johnson (2001) finds that there are three variables influence them. The first is cognitive variable which deals with their intelligence and language aptitude. Those terms deal with learning specific language which is different from general intelligence. The second variable is affective which engages with what the students feel. The third is personality variable that generally is divided into introvert and extrovert.

Intelligence as a part of cognitive variable plays a very important role in learning a foreign language. However, there are two contradictions which firstly argue that it is not necessary for learning a foreign language. It is believed that foreign language should only be taught in university level  as a major or a supporting course. On the other hand, intelligence affects the learners’ achievements. If they are good in learning foreign languages, that ability will bridge or facilitate them in mastering the language skills. However, it commonly happens to non-oral communication such as reading and writing.

Aptitude is the rate of the learners to learn a foreign language successfully. Through Modern Language Aptitude Test (MLAT), there are some components influence the learners’ aptitude. Firstly, phonetic coding ability is an ability to translate and to identify audio or sound material which actually is very usefull for they who get difficulty in remembering word or sentence. They translate the L2 to L1 that requires a longer time because they find difficulties not also in translating the word but also the facial expression. In conclusion, this factor requires both ears sensitivity and brain. Secondly, grammatical sensitivity deals with how the learners aware to show their ability in constructing a sentence. The learners will try to spell and pronounce it whether they sound correctly or not. The third is inductive learning ability which relates to how they observe and analyze the harmony and the correlation of both meaning and grammar. The last component, rote learning ability mostly includes the vocabulary properties had by the learners.

The next variable is affective which covers the sub-variables of motivation and attitude. There are two kinds of motivation; integrative motivation which concerns with the learners in learning a foreign language and its culture and instrumental motivation in which the learners learn the foreign language for other purposes such as for getting a better job and to travel the world. The presenter also argues that intergrative motivation is better than instrumental motivation for the second one destructs the essence of learning a foreign language. She also served some researches which the instumental motivation is also necessary to motivate the learnes in learning a foreign language. The second is attitude. The way we learn language based on the level is different. The basic level only requires fluency but the higher level requires more  aspects including the accent. Here are some types regarding to attitude. The first is  attitude towards success where the teacher separates them based on two categories; good learner and poor learner. The aim is to hel them achieve the same goal in different ways. Attitude towards teacher does depend on the teacher. If a learner dislike the teaher, he then will not be well-motivated to learn the language. It happen to both good and poor learners. Attitude towards your own country is the ways we think about our country. Based on feeling, there are also two types describing it. The first is ethnocentrism is doctrine of belive that our country is the best country or superior. Unfortunately, it will grow arrogancy to learn other languages. The second type is anomie. The learners are lack of respectful of their country. They learn other languages to avoid their culture and perhaps dream to stay in another country.

Commonly Found Questions

The first question is how to accommodate the learners with low motivation but they have high cognitive. From the discussion, the first step taken, should be the communication between the teacher and that student. That should be done personally, not in front of the whole class to avoid the student feel embarassed. If there are more than one student, the teacher may have a group discussion with the students. More importantly, personal and group discussion, those both require the teacher’s plan in formulating the appropriate strategies. Another way is by maximizing the use of ICT to interact and stimulate the learners.

The second question is whether the teacher should separate the students based on their level or not. There actually are two basic assumption regarding to this issue. The first is agreeing the separation class to focus on the continuity of what the good learners already comprehended and what the poor learners have not mastered yet. The second assumption is letting them to stay in one class. It aims to motivate the poor learners to compete with the good learners. However, a mixed class coerces the teacher to know and understand their backgrounds in order to not leave them behind.

Critical Analysis

Being a good learner in learning a foreign language is not easy since he should implement more than one variable. Those variables do not only about the way of mastering the language but also the factor from L1. As a teacher, we cannot measure how good our students are from one variable. Therefore, it is compulsory to really comprehend all variables od the good learner. 

According to Renandya (2017) in his presentation, he stated that the first factor in making both teacher and learners good in teaching and learning is motivation. The students themselves should have motivation whether it is intrinsic and extrinsic or integrative and instrumental. Appending to the presentation, instrumental motivation is very crucial. The word destructive does not define it since it is a supporting motivation and as important as the integrative motivation. Also, it is the implication or the real purpose of learning a foreign language for they intend to implement it in reality.

Reviewing from some experiences, the learners’ characteristics should not be avoided by the teacher. On the other hand, it is a great opportunity to combine them in a good way such as grouping them where they can share and help each other. They can compete and complete each other. The cognitive and affective variables are necessary to be known by the teacher. Judging or determining them as good or poor learners cannot be analyzed and measured by one variable yet with all three variables and sub-variables of each.

References

Johnson, Keith. 2001. An Introduction to Foreign Language Learning and Teaching. England: Pearson Education Limited.